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ASU, City of Peoria Partner to Create an "Entrepreneurial Ecosystem"

Post Date:09/09/2019 1:12 PM

By: Nick Serpa, Chamber Business News

Like other growing Valley cities, Peoria wants to attract and create new opportunities in fast-developing industries like FinTech and autonomous vehicles, according to city economic development director Rick Buss. But doing so, Buss said, requires more than just a vision.

“One of the critical infrastructure components is having a culture of innovation, entrepreneurship, and educational resources to be ready to bring those companies,” he said.

That’s why the City of Peoria partnered with Arizona State University Entrepreneurship and Innovation in April 2018 to launch Peoria Forward, a partnership designed to build out the city’s “entrepreneurial ecosystem.” That sort of language might conjure images of “how to start your business” seminars, but according to Senior Program Manager Kristin Slice, Peoria Forward is about much more than that.

This program is part of Peoria Forward. Peoria Forward is a high-impact partnership between ASU E+I and the City of Peoria designed to grow and scale the entrepreneurial ecosystem within the City of Peoria and accelerate economic development.